


Coffee and Calicos

by dreamthievespart17



Series: Valentendou Week 2021 [3]
Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Calico Cats, Cat Cafés, Cats, Coffee, Coffee Shops, Dates, Nonbinary Character, Nonbinary Tendou Satori, Other, Random science facts, Tendou Satori uses they/them pronouns, Valentendou Week 2021
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-14
Updated: 2021-02-14
Packaged: 2021-03-15 08:00:05
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,195
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29432796
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/dreamthievespart17/pseuds/dreamthievespart17
Summary: Tendou and Ushijima visit a cat café.Day 3 of Valentendou WeekFlower shopCaféSoulmates/Cupid
Relationships: Tendou Satori & Ushijima Wakatoshi, Tendou Satori/Ushijima Wakatoshi
Series: Valentendou Week 2021 [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2155581
Kudos: 23
Collections: Valentendou Week





	Coffee and Calicos

Stepping through the doorway of the cat café, Tendou beamed. 

They were practically vibrating with excitement, squeezing Wakatoshi’s hand tightly as they lightly bounced on the balls of their feet. 

“Wakatoshi! This is incredible,” they exclaimed merrily. “I can’t believe you actually agreed to come with me.”

Wakatoshi smiled softly. “Of course, Satori. You seemed so excited about the idea that I had to come along as well.”

Tendou grinned. “Still, it’s very generous of you considering you didn’t seem all too enthusiastic when I proposed it.”

Wakatoshi shrugged. “True, but I knew that it was important to you, so I agreed.”

Tendou hummed and squeezed his hand once more, turning back to the inside. 

The two of them removed their shoes and put on slippers before going any further into the café and Tendou practically crowed with joy as they took in the scenery. 

All around them were cats. 

There were dozens of them, all shapes and sizes and colors and patterns. Some wandered around the space, brushing by patrons before they could be properly pet. Others lounged on the couches and wooden structures that protruded from the floor and walls, serving as perches for the felines. More still were seated on and around the many patrons of the café, allowing themselves to be pet and purring contentedly. 

At the feeling of something soft brushing their leg, Tendou looked down to find a calico beauty winding her way around around their ankles, tail curling across their knee. 

“Wakatoshi,” Tendou whispered. “She’s beautiful.”

Wakatoshi chuckled softly. “Whatever you say, Tendou. I’m just glad you’re enjoying yourself.”

Tendou nodded, crouching down to pet her fur as the cat nudged her head against their fingers, urging them to scratch her head, Tendou happily complying. 

“Would you like me to order some drinks while you pet her?” Wakatoshi offered. 

Tendou nodded. “Thank you, that would be wonderful.”

Grabbing a pillow they seated themselves on the cushion, wriggling into a more comfortable position before returning to the cat, smiling as she climbed over their legs and into their lap, lounging across their long limbs. 

Tendou sighed in contentment and continued to stroke the cat, gently skimming their fingers over her side and scratching behind her ears as she purred steadily. 

Not too long later, Tendou looked up to find Wakatoshi setting down two drinks and a plate as well. 

Managing to coax the cat to move over with them, they seated themself on the cushion in front of the table, Wakatoshi across from them and the calico in their lap. 

Tendou gasped when they got a better look at what Wakatoshi had brought them. There were two coffees and the one in front of them was brimming with foam, artfully curled into the image of a smiling cat peeking out from the pale pink depths, paws clutching the rim. 

The drink in front of Wakatoshi wasn’t nearly as elaborately presented as theirs, but it still brought a smile to their face. It was a caramel brown color with two streaked white hearts proudly resting on its surface and small pink accents curling around the edges. 

Between the two drinks rested a plate full of adorable daifuku, accented with tiny eyes, whiskers and cat ears. 

It was the most wonderful presentation Tendou had ever seen. 

They looked up, finding Wakatoshi with a small smile on his face. 

“You… you ordered all of this?” Tendou asked slowly. 

Wakatoshi shrugged. “You said you wanted to come here for the cats, but also for the food, so I just ordered whatever I thought you would like. I asked the woman working and she said that these were some of the favorites.”

Tendou beamed. “You’re so thoughtful, Wakatoshi.”

The drink was too beautiful to destroy just yet, so first they tried the daifuku, biting into one with a sweet bean filling and a pale pink outside. Delicious. 

They soon discovered an ichigo daifuku, boasting a pale green outside with cream and a strawberry at the center, sweetness making their taste buds tingle with pleasure. Working up the courage to try their drink, they sipped it carefully, hesitant to ruin the cute cat design, but quickly drank more, happily surprised at how much they liked the flavor. While Tendou wasn’t a coffee fanatic like some others on the team, they drank it occasionally and had wanted to try it at the café, though mainly just for the cute designs they’d seen on the website. 

In their lap, the calico seemed to have fallen asleep, or at least was resting comfortably, and Tendou stroked her fondly with the hand they hadn’t been using to eat. 

“She’s so wonderful,” Tendou murmured and they could feel the way Wakatoshi was watching them from across the table. 

He was silent for a moment before speaking. “Why are you so certain that the cat is a ‘she’?” He asked. 

Tendou smiled. “Wakatoshi were you not paying attention during biology class last year?”

Wakatoshi snorted softly. “Just tell me why,” he insisted. 

“Well,” Tendou began. “Nearly all calico cats out there are female and it has to do with the way the genes are transferred.  
“You see, ‘Toshi, the color for whether the cat will be black or orange is determined by a gene on the X chromosome, so it’s called an X-linked gene.”

“That’s sounds a bit familiar,” Wakatoshi murmured, coaxing a grin out of Tendou. 

Tendou continued. “Female cats have two X chromosomes and during their development, in each cell, the color gene for either black or orange will inactivate, so one of the colors is the dominant one and determines whether the fur will be black or orange for each patch of skin. Because of that, they have the spotted pattern, with some parts being orange and some black. Since the male cats have only one X chromosome with a Y, they’re usually just black or orange, depending on which gene they inherit.”

Wakatoshi nodded, looking contemplative. After a moment, he asked. “Why does the cat also have white patches then?”

Tendou grinned, happy that he’d actually been listening. “That’s because they have a condition on some areas of their skin called pie-balding where the skin and fur don’t have any pigment. This also happens in other types of cats too, like the black and white ones they call ‘tuxedo cats.’”

Wakatoshi took a sip of his drink. “Tendou you amaze me with how much you remember from that class, I thought you weren’t paying attention either.”

Tendou smiled. “I just like cats, that’s why I remember.”

Wakatoshi nodded, then gestured at the feline happily asleep in their lap. “I think she likes you as well.”

Tendou stroked the cat again, expression tender as they took in her trusting, sleeping form. Cats really were such fascinating creatures. You had to earn their trust and respect, but once you did, they stayed loyal.

Tendou looked up to find Wakatoshi watching them once more. 

“Thank you for coming here with me, ‘Toshi,” they murmured quietly. 

“I would have taken you to the moon if I could see you smile that way, Satori… thank you for letting me share your joy.”

**Author's Note:**

> Hey everyone! Thank you so much for reading :) 
> 
> Also, the calico cat explanation is factual, so if you’re curious and want to know more, I can provide links to sources or you can just google it yourself lol
> 
> Btw I’ve never been to Japan before, though I researched about daifuku and I’m pretty sure that what I said makes sense, but if it’s inaccurate, please let me know, it wasn’t intentional 
> 
> If you enjoyed this, please kudos or comment, it makes my day :3


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